How to Replace a Brick Wall to Built-In Shelves

Preparing the Wall

• 1

  Measure the length and height of the brick wall where you intend to install your built-in shelves using a measuring tape. If the wall is longer than four feet, you may need to consider building and installing several separate shelving units to cover the entire length of the wall. One large shelving unit may not be as stable as smaller, individual units.

• 2

  Use a circular saw to cut a sheet of 1-inch pine to the total length and height of your shelving unit. You will be installing this board directly against the brick wall to serve as the back panel for your unit.

• 3

  Stand the back panel upright against the brick wall where you intend to install the shelving unit. Use a pencil to make small marks approximately every 10 inches along all four sides of the hardwood panel. If possible, align these marks with the mortar joint between bricks.

• 4

  Remove the panel from the wall and pre-drill holes through it where you made the pencil marks. Place the hardwood panel back in position on the wall and drill through the holes into the mortar joints between bricks using a hammer drill. Drill each hole to a depth approximately equal to the length of the plastic plugs you selected and use a drill bit equal in diameter to the plastic plugs.

• 5

  Insert a plastic plug into each of the holes you just drilled, tapping gently with a hammer until it is flush with the wall. Press the back panel firmly against the wall and drive 2-inch wood screws through the back panel into the plastic plugs you just inserted into the wall. When finished, your back panel should be attached securely to the brick wall.

Framing and Completing the Shelving Unit

• 6

  Cut two pieces of 1-by-10-inch pine to the desired length of your shelving unit using a circular saw. These boards will serve as the top and bottom panels. Cut two more 1-by-10-inch pine boards to the height of the unit, minus two inches to account for the thickness of the top and bottom panels.

• 7

  Position the bottom panel so it is flat on the floor and its back edge is flush and aligned with the back panel you just installed on the wall. Place the top panel flush with the ceiling so the back edge is flat against the back panel. Drive 1-1/2-inch wood screws through the top and bottom panels into the floor, ceiling and back panel to secure them in place.

• 8

  Slide the side panels vertically into place between the ends of the top and bottom panels you just installed. The back edge of the side panels should be flush with the back panel. Drive 1-1/2-inch wood screws at an angle through the edges of the side panels into the top, bottom and back panels to attach them.

• 9

  Measure and mark the desire intervals for your shelves along the side panels in pencil. Cut your shelves out of 1-by-10-inch pine to the length of the shelving unit, minus two inches, and the same depth as your side panels.

• 10

  Install the shelves by sliding them horizontally between the side panels where you made your pencil marks. Use a level to ensure that each shelf sits flat. Attach the shelves by driving 1-1/2-inch wood screws through the side panels into the thickness of the shelves. Drive additional screws at a downward angle through the back edge of the shelves into the back panel.

• 11

  Repeat all steps to build and install identical shelving units, if necessary, to completely cover the wall. Secure the units to each other by driving nails from a nail gun through the side panel of one shelving unit into the side panel of the adjacent unit.

• 12

  Paint or stain your completed shelving units to match the existing decor in your room. To protect the surface of your shelves from minor wear and water damage, apply a coat of clear varnish or polyurethane.